Im a rising senior, and im not sure exactly what i want to major in. I know that i definitely want to do a science, but im not sure exactly which one. Im mostly interested in bio, and i even mentioned liking biology in my common app essay, but i dont want to commit to it yet since there arent many job opportunities with a bio major if i choose not to go to medical school.
So would it be a bad idea to mention bio in my common app essay and to list it as my intended major if its possible that ill do a different science? Or will i still be able to choose a different major once i enter college? And i also know that some colleges have separate schools for engineering— so if i end up going to the specific school that doesnt have a biomedical engineering major, would i be able to switch into the engineering school later on if i choose to do biomedical engineering?
bump
No you don’t have to pick a major now. BUT you need to look closely at schools you are considering for specific majors you are considering. Many do have separate admissions for engineering. I would say usually it is harder to switch into engineering than out of engineering since many schools have freshman engineering classes and if you don’t start you are out of step- which might make it hard to finish in 4 years. These are the kinds of specific questions you need to ask the departments at the schools you are looking at. They won’t care what you end up doing when you apply - you’re not hurting chances by asking the questions. Some schools even have separate tours/sessions for engineering and that might answer your questions. Otherwise, email is your friend.
As a rule, I would start with most restrictive major (prob engineering in your case) and see if you like it.
The major you list on the Common Application is completely tentative, and admissions officers know this; in fact, you do not have to list one at all if you are truly undecided. Therefore, I see no problem discussing biology in your essay or even listing it as your major.
But like the poster above me said, some programs are easier to switch into than others. Engineering, for example, is extremely hard to switch into if you still want to be done with undergraduate school in four years… especially if you’re changing majors after one, two, three, etc., semester. If I were you and had the opportunity to apply to the engineering school of whatever college, I would do it. Getting out of engineering is easy; most – if not all – colleges will not give you a hard time. But getting into engineering if you don’t start with it in the beginning? Plan on staying a semester or two longer at your undergraduate institution.
Some colleges are completely open, others close some doors to you. Some of the strictest require you to know your major right away. Some are so open that you could even switch majors senior year and still graduate on time (very unlikely, unusual, and not recommended, but I do know someone who did that and managed to graduate on time, although she did have to overload).
I would recommend attempting to find out for each individual college you are interested in attending. There may be information on their websites, although that would more likely be their general policy, not biology and engineering specifically. If not, places like this provide a good forum for finding/asking information. If you are looking at the smaller privates, you could probably even get a response from the professors themselves if you emailed them for advice on their own colleges’ policies.
You can tell by entering the school in the common app and seeing if you need to choose a particular college. Generally speaking large public universities might require you to apply to a particular college limiting you to a family of majors
thanks for the help everyone!!
I’ve researched the biomedical engineering area for other students and found:
A graduate degree is usually required for a career in it.
It’s possible to access a biomedical engineering graduate program with a science degree (for example, http://gsbse.umaine.edu/admissions/overview).
The molecular biology track can give access to molecular/genetic engineering.
It depends on the college, as others have said, but you should stay focused on deciding what it is you really want to do in life and not let the college’s schedules decide for you!
Look at graduate/undergrad biomedical engineering programs. And look at the prerequisites they may have. So you can take those classes and in preparal.